EGGS FOR THE MEMORIES

photo by John Loo

"Consumers are shelling out more for a carton of large eggs as benchmark prices in California have gone up by 150 percent in a year."   That's no yolk.  In California there is a push to require all eggs sold be from free roaming chickens, and that effects price as well.  I wonder, what came first -- freedom or the chicken?      news                                  

Principle in the type:  "We should (and we do) rejoice in the God-ordained plan that permits us to make choices to act for ourselves and experience the consequences . . . We can choose to become the kind of person that we will . . . "    D. Todd Christofferson 

GOOD MEDICINE

photo by y i v a

Oh I don't know this just makes me laugh and laugh.  Even Queen B's laughing.  It's the weekend, time to relax, and laugh.




                                    

Principle in the type:  "If you wish to glimpse inside a human soul get to know a man, don't bother analyzing his ways of being silent, of talking, of weeping, of seeing how much he is moved by noble ideas; you will get better results if you just watch him laugh.  If he laughs well, he's a good man."     Fyodor Dostoyevsky

                                                                             HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND TPT FRIENDS!

ROAD FORKS

photo by David Shankbone

Scandal actress, Kerry Washington, said she doesn't feel her character Olivia should be anybody's role model.  "She's having an affair with a married man, who is President of the United States.  And a murderer."   Yeah, ya'think?        story       

Principle in the type:  "Every one of you, sooner or later, must stand at the forks of the road, and choose between personal interest and some principle of right."   Karl G. Maeser 

LEGO MANIAC IN A GOOD WAY

photo by Jurgen Lousberg

Lego lovers came in droves to last weekend's Brick Fest Live, in Pasadena, California.  "Thousands . . . were invited to check out the latest LEGO-related offerings from a host of vendors, get up close with serious builders and their creations and take part in assembling their own plastic block masterpieces."  news      Go ahead and build something.

Principles in the type:  "Don't be afraid to leave for the open sea.  Don't be afraid to confront the waves of your future, the storms of professional challenges."    Claudio R.M. Costa

HOUSE OF LOVE

photo by Sultry/sulky/silly

After over three years of work from all involved California Habitat for Humanity recently "handed keys to nearly finished duplexes . . . built for U.S. veterans. . . . Words can’t describe the feeling and emotion of finally seeing this house come to life,” said [former U.S. Marine Cpl. Juan Pablo] Sirri, 28, of West Hills, an Iraq combat veteran standing next to his wife and 4-month-old daughter Valentina . . . This is a house from the man upstairs.”   news link 
                        

Principle in the type:  "But I tell you this: God cares about you."     Dieter F. Uchtdorf

 

RULES FOR KIDS

photo by Nathan

Did school start this week for your babies?  It did in my town.  Do me a favor, try not to make these cuties cry on their first day!




                               

Principle in the type:  "There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children."      Nelson Mandela  

CLIMB EVERY MOUNTAIN

photo by Diana Robinson

Who says we can't all get along??  First Lady Michele Obama and former First Lady Laura Bush are cochairs in a campaign to rediscover national parks.  They are "calling on Americans to 'Find Your Park' "  news              The National Park Foundation hopes their invitation and enthusiasm will help to increase attendance and funds for America's national parks.

(Correctly name the national park above and be today's imaginary winner!)

Principle in the type:  "What are men to rocks and mountains?"      Jane Austen 

ROOTING FOR YOU

photo by Son of Groucho

"Weak roots, years of drought and a battery of rain caused a pine tree to collapse onto a group of day campers near the Rose Bowl . . . " in Pasadena, California.   "The roots left in the ground after the tree fell were girdled and relatively small . . . " reported a specialist.   No one was killed, thankfully.   news               Roots go deep with hard work, growth, and conviction.

Principle in the type:  "Sometimes we may ask God for success, and He gives us physical and mental stamina. We might plead for prosperity, and we receive enlarged perspective and increased patience, or we petition for growth and are blessed with the gift of grace. He may bestow upon us conviction and confidence as we strive to achieve worthy goals. And when we plead for relief from physical, mental, and spiritual difficulties, He may increase our resolve and resilience. "        David A. Bednar   

ACE YOUR LIFE

photo by dan lundmark

The ASICS World Series of Beach Volleyball is happening this week in Long Beach, California.  It's a very big deal in beach volleyball!  Josh Hutcherson, star of “The Hunger Games" will be there, sponsoring a charity event.  He's quoted as saying, "Some sun, sand, music and sports … the perfect combo . . . "  news link.     This makes me think about living a well rounded life.

Principle in the type:  "Wealth without work.  Pleasure without conscience.  Science without humanity.  Knowledge without character.  Politics without principle.  Commerce without morality.  Worship without sacrifice."          Mahatma Gandhi   (The Seven Deadly Sins.)

MOCKINGBIRDS AND SCHOOL

photo by Avolore

Car ride home from vacation with the kids remind you of the video clip below?   Summer's over!  School's in!  Enjoy.  Laugh.  Or cry.   However it suits you.






                               

Principles in the type:  "The world of opportunity lies ahead of you, and education is the key that will unlock that door."        Gordon B. Hinckley  

                                                                                          Happy Weekend Readers!

COUSIN FEVER

photo by Benjamin Thomas

I just think author A.J. Jacobs' latest project is so cool, and fun.  He has spent over a year creating the largest family tree of all time, interviewing 20-times-removed celebrity cousins and such as he goes.   We know we are all brothers and sisters, right?   "For the first time ever – thanks to mind-boggling advances in the science of family trees – we can figure out how we're related to almost any other human on earth.  It's a revolution," says Jacobs.       story          

Principle in the type:  "Every family has . . . keepsakes.  These include genealogies, family stories, historical accounts, and traditions.  These . . . keepsakes also form a bridge between past and future and bind generations together in ways that no other keepsake can."     Dennis B. Neuenschwander      

            

ROBOTS ARE PEOPLE TOO

photo by Archie

HitchBOT has left the building.  This summer the robot began its "first cross-country hitchhiking trip of the U.S.," aiming to finish in San Francisco.   As most hitchhikers do, Hitch will be relying solely "on the kindness and curiosity of strangers."    The creation of professors at Toronto's Ryerson University, hitchBOT has already traveled Canada and Europe in a sort of art and social study.     story

Principle in the type:  ". . . we need each other! . . . we need to lift each other and help each other."    Linda K. Burton

MAKING LEMONADE

photo by  Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism

Refreshing story time.

You know the kids and their lemonade stands that pop up every summer?  After asking "riders if they would mind," Boston city bus driver, John Lohan treated his passengers to a lemonade from a child's stand on his route, during a sweltering day.    news

Principle in the type:  "All these acts of kindness can change hearts and lives.  When we take advantage of the unlimited opportunities to love and serve our fellowmen . . . our capacity to love . . . and serve others will greatly increase."    Dieter F. Uchtdorf

 

PRESENT AND ACCOUNTED FOR

photo by allie pasquier

"Poignant moments unfold at a preschool in a retirement home."  When Filmmaker Evan Briggs heard that such a place existed, she "knew she wanted to film a documentary ['Present Perfect'] there."   Sweetness on top of sweetness -- see  video below.    story





                              

Principle in the type:  "I have made friends with older women whom I have admired for years who let me learn from their experience.  I drink from their life well."    Amy Poehler

                                                                    Happy Weekend Peeps.  Take Care of Each Other!

FLOWER POWER

photo by David Sterblk

Beautifying and inspiring her community, florist Lisa Waud plans "to turn an abandoned house in Hamtrack, Michigan into [a] beautiful flower-covered oasis as part of an exhibit planned" for this October.  She purchased the house for $500, and envisions the walls and ceilings filled with living plants and flowers in the four day exhibit, eventually becoming a flower farm and a design center."   story      

Principle in the type:  "We have a moral obligation to exercise our personal capabilities of mind, muscle, and spirit in a way that will return to . . . our families, and our society the fruits of our best efforts."   J. Richard Clarke

PLUTO'NESS

photo by Kevin Gill

Pluto is ready for it's closeup.  After a 9 1/2 year and 3 billion miles travel, NASA's New Horizons spacecraft is snapping pictures.  Like, close up pictures!   ". . . project scientist Hal Weaver said.  'It's just blowing my mind.' "   news link                   

Principle in the text:  "Equipped with his five senses, man explores the universe around him and calls the adventure science."       Edwin Powell Hubble